A Magic Kingdom Christmas – DVC Duo’s Holiday Guide

Breakout the eggnog, reindeer antlers, menorahs, and ugly sweaters! It’s that time again, holiday season! We’re kicking-off the season with our series of guides celebrating the holidays around Walt Disney World, from theme parks, to resorts and everything in between. It’s one of our of favorite times of year, actually let’s be honest it IS our favorite time of year! Holiday season at Walt Disney World begins in the Magic Kingdom in early November (November 8th to be exact) and runs through the New Year. Let’s start our holiday tour over at Mickey’s home as there’s nothing more magical than a Magic Kingdom Christmas!

Main Street USA

Main Street USA

Walking into the Magic Kingdom on November 7th everything is normal, just another Disney day, then bam! Overnight, pixie dust is sprinkled and boom!, it’s a Magic Kingdom Christmas. The focal point of a Magic Kingdom Christmas has to be Main Street USA. The wreaths and decorations line the street, which is anchored by the giant Christmas tree on one end and a Christmas Castle on the other. As you make your way down Main Street with your head on a swivel make sure to check out the store fronts. No detail is too small in Walt Disney World. Within all the store fronts are different scenes telling the story of Mickey’s Christmas Carol. In the evening you may even get caught in the snow! You heard me right, snow in Florid – it could only happen at Walt Disney World.

Passholder Insight: There are two pictures that scream Magic Kingdom Christmas. The first is in front of the tree and in front of the castle. There is no bad time for these pictures, but nighttime is extra magical as you’ll have the lights on the tree and castle turned on. Aww!

A Frozen Holiday Wish

A Frozen Holiday Wish

I know, I know, Nate, let it go! We’re Frozen’d out! I hear you, but this is a show you should definitely check out. Every night Anna, Elsa, Kristoff and of course your favorite snowman, Olaf (sorry Frosty!) take the stage to “light” the castle. The show is about 15 minutes or so, and culminates with Elsa magically transforming the castle into – …well, you’ll have to see for yourself, no spoiler alerts here!

The show take places in front of the castle on the main stage at both 6:15 pm and 8:15 pm (double check My Disney Experience App to confirm time). If your young ones love Frozen we would recommend getting there a few minutes early to ensure a good view, 15 to 20 minutes should be plenty. If you’re looking for the “front row” then you may want to add a little more time to that. The DVC Duo recommendation would be sit a little further back so you can take in the whole show, some times you can be too close!

Passholder Insight: If there’s a Mickey’s Christmas Party the night you’re at the Magic Kingdom please note that the second show (8:15 pm) will be only for the guests of the party. We will cover Mickey’s Christmas Party in depth on another blog.

Jingle Cruise!

Magic Kingdom Christmas Ride Overlays

Overlay? What’s that!? An overlay at Walt Disney World is when they “retheme” an attraction for a very short period of time, usually during the holiday season or for a special occasion. A Magic Kingdom Christmas wouldn’t be complete without two classic attraction overlays. The “must do” Christmas attraction in the DVC Duo household has to be the Jingle Cruise, that’s not a mistype. The Jungle Cruise is rethemed for the holidays, from the queue through the ride and even the puns around Christmas. Grab a seat and getting ready for some awesome Christmas dad jokes! “Why did Sven try to eat Olaf’s nose? Because he doesn’t carrot all!” HA! HA! Whomp, whomp, whomp….

The other major overlay for Christmas is the Country Bear Jamboree. A true Disney classic. Who wouldn’t want to see bears in Christmas hats singing our favorite carols? Throw in a pun or two and you have a holiday hit!

Passholder Insight: If you’re on the West Coast for the holidays, you’ll have to check out The Nightmare Before Christmas overlay at the Haunted Mansion. Say hi to Sandy Claws for us! Question for our readers: is The Nightmare Before Christmas a Christmas movie or Halloween movie? Comment below or on our Facebook Page!

Liberty Tree Tavern

Holiday Meal and Sweet Treats!

No holiday is complete without a proper holiday dinner. If you’re looking for the traditional turkey with all the trimmings make your way over to the Liberty Tree Tavern, in Liberty Square. They serve up the good stuff in a family style meal. Now this is not a special Christmas offering as they do it every day, however who wants to eat a larger turkey dinner in July? Can you say meat sweats? So punny!

Outside the meals, there is traditionally a special Magic Kingdom Christmas snack for the season. Last years snack was the Sandy Claws Orange-Vanilla Cake Push-Pop. with a cranberry mousse. Yes please! You can usually find the special snack at the quick serves restaurants. Keep an eye out on our Twitter feed for this years offering!

Passholder Insight: If you’re going to Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas party a great way to get into the holiday mood is kicking off the night with dinner at Liberty Tavern. Our recommendation would be to aim for a 4:30 pm to 5:00 pm reservation. That way you’re ready to go at 7 pm when the party starts!

The Magic Kingdom is always a magical place, even more so during the holidays. You grab the snacks and we’ll meet you at our favorite Christmas attraction! Ready for a punny cruise?